RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY: EFFECTIVENESS OF POVERTY ALLEVIATION PROGRAMMES IN NIGERIA

This research work
will make use of questionnaires, based on stratified sampling procedure. Delta
State is made up of 25 local government council areas. A total number of 250
questionnaires will be administered in which 10 questionnaires will be
administered to each local government council. However, the questionnaires that
will be analyzed are those ones that are actually completed and returned.

3.2 QUESTIONNAIRE
DESIGN

The questionnaire
design comprised of different questions, which made it possible to elicit
important information on this study. Information could be received because the
researcher tried to use closed ended questions in some areas. Some of the
questions were ranked to give the respondents a choice to pick and these were
mainly those that were used to test the maintained hypothesis.

The questions were
pretested before administration to ensure validity, reliability and clarity.

In this research
work, the researcher used the survey method with the use of a well-developed
questionnaire to sample the operations of respondents on this study.

3.4 DATA ANALYSIS
TECHNIQUE

In testing the
various hypotheses of the study, the technique and tool employed for data
analysis is the chi-square method. This is simply expressed below:

fe¤2 ] fe-fo [åX2 =

X2 = Chi-square

fo =Observed
frequency

fe = Expected
frequency

3.5 DATA REQUIRED
AND SOURCES

The data required
for this study is the cross-sectional data based on primary sources.

The need for the
primary data has arisen from the need to get the direct impact of poverty alleviation
programmes.

The Chi-square
(X2) is a test of goodness of fit. It is a statistical distribution that can be
used to test if an observation of value differs significantly from what was
expected. The implication of the X2 formula is that if the actual results are
exactly as expected (fo – fe) = 0 for each item in the series, and X2 works out
to be zero. On the other hand, the bigger the differences between observed and
expected values, the bigger the square of these differences and therefore the bigger
X2 becomes.

A number of two
hundred and fifty questionnaires were administered to the respondents and only
two hundred and thirty questionnaires were returned. The sample size for this
is two hundred and thirty.

Tables will be
used to present the data.

TABLE 4.2.1

QUESTION ONE

Is poverty
alleviation programmes achieving its objectives?

Variables Response
Percentage (%)

Yes 180 78.3

No 50 21.7

Total 230 100

Source: Computed
from questionnaire.

Form the above
table 4.2.1, 180 respondents representing 78.3% of total respondents said that
poverty alleviation programmes is achieving its objectives gradually while 50
respondents representing 21.7% of the total respondents said it is not
achieving its objectives.

TABLE 4.2.2

QUESTION TWO

What are the
problems militating against poverty alleviation programmes?

Variables Response
Percentage (%)

Corruption 110
47.8%

Poor Funding 90
39.1%

Lack of follow up
30 13.0%

Total 230 100%

Source: Computed
from questionnaire.

From the table
above, 110 respondents representing 47.8% of the respondents said that
corruption is a major problem militating against poverty reduction programme.
While 90 respondents representing 31.9% of the total respondents said that poor
funding is a major problem militating against the programme, while 30
respondents representing 13.0% said that it is lack of follow up (monitoring by
government officials).

TABLE 4.2.3

QUESTION THREE

Has the poverty
alleviation programmes have any effect on your economic life?

Variables Response
Percentage (%)

Yes 190 82.6%

No 40 17.4%

Total 230 100%

Source: Computed
from questionnaire.

From the above
table, 190 respondents representing 82.6% of total respondents agreed that the
poverty alleviation programme has affected their economic life while 40
respondent representing 17.4% of the total respondents said no.

TABLE 4.2.4

QUESTION FOUR

Has the poverty
alleviation programme been able to increase the level of rural development?

Variables Response
Percentage (%)

Yes 170 73.9%

No 50 21.7%

Not sure 10 4.3%

Total 230 100%

Source: Computed
from questionnaire.

From the table
above, 170 respondents representing 73.9% of the total respondents said that
poverty alleviation programme has increased the level of rural development,
while 50 respondents representing 21.7% of the total respondents and 10
respondents representing 4.3% of the total respondents said that they are not
sure if the poverty alleviation has really increased the level of rural
development.

4.2 TEST OF
HYPOTHESIS

The use of the
chi-square may be considered as a measure of discrepancy between O1 and E1. The
significant level of 5% and degree freedom will determine the region of
acceptance and rejection. The test statistics,fe¤2 )fo ¬- fe(Schi-square relevant to the hypothesis is given by X2 =

Where X2 =
Chi-square

Fo = Observed
frequency

Fe = Expected
frequency

HYPOTHESIS

Ho: Poverty
alleviation programme has not been significantly effective in reducing poverty
in Nigeria.

Hi: Poverty
alleviation programme has been significantly effective in reducing poverty in
Nigeria.

Variables Fo fe
fo-fe (fo-fe)2/fe

Yes 180 115 65
36.7

No 50 115 -65
-36.7

X2=73.4¾Total 230 230

Source: Computed
from Table 4.2.1

Therefore, the
(calculated) X2 value = 73.4.

The tabulated
value of X2 is read from the table of X2. We have X2 (d.f) = 1 with 0.05 level
of significance.

X20.05 = 3.841

Decision:

Since X2
calculated is greater than X2 tabulated. That is 73.4 > 3.841. Therefore, we
reject the Ho> hypothesis and accept the Hi: hypothesis with the conclusion
that poverty alleviation programme has been effective in reducing poverty in
Nigeria.